The present invention relates to a product and method for baking potatoes in a microwave oven.
It has long been a problem to accurately determine when a potato is sufficiently baked. It is especially difficult while cooking with a microwave because the skin of the potato will not get as crisp as with a conventional oven, therefore making mere sight determinations impractical, if not impossible. One generally has to temporarily stop the microwave, feel the potato and then rotate it so that other parts of the surface of the potato receive adequate exposure to the microwave energy. These steps may have to be repeated several times until the potato is satisfactorily cooked, i.e., when the meat or pulp of the potato is softened. This is an inefficient method by which to bake potatoes by microwave. The problem with baking potatoes by microwave oven, therefore, are (1) that potatoes, being of substantial mass, cannot be evenly cooked because a large portion of the surface area is shielded from the microwaves as it lies on the cooking tray in the oven; and (2) that visual inspection of determining when the potato is cooked is impossible.
Cookware exists which enables potatoes to be positioned in such a way that they may be efficiently baked in a microwave oven. This may be done by suspending the potato on upright teeth or blades so that the potato does not rest on the cooking tray. This allows the potato to receive cooking heat to its entire surface area. The problem still exists, however, in determining when the potato has finished cooking.
Accordingly, there is a distinct need for a device which would enable one to efficiently cook a potato in a microwave oven, while making it possible to provide an indication that the potato has finished cooking.